Category Archives: Life

Happy Valentine’s Day from our home to yours! This little garland makes me smile every time I walk by. I’m thinking it might become a permanent resident in our home…

I hope you have a day full of love planned for your loved ones. We enjoyed heart-shaped cinnamon rolls, hand-written love notes, and a good old gift exchange at breakfast. We even gave the dog some bacon. That’s how much love was in the air.

I wanted this bedroom to be light and airy, but still have some character. Our last bedroom was dark and had way too much packed in it. Space was very limited. In this room though, we have lots of natural light which has quickly become the number one item on my “must have in a house” list.

A couple usually has different tastes. Thankfully, JT and I agree most of the time and build on each other’s ideas. He wanted a very, very streamlined modern space- a low to ground bed, all white, etc. Our last bedroom had a bright coral headboard and it scared him a little too much I think. I wanted a modern look too (it just feels a lot cleaner and more freeing to me), but of course am drawn to more of a “glam” look. I just can’t completely suppress all my girly, “I wish I lived in Paris in the early 1900′s” urges. So, compromise.

There’s not a single touch of pink, but leopard velvet pillows add my necessary touch of glam. The mirror is very ornate and serves as the focal point in the room, but it is still clean and modern because of the white laquer finish. The bed is simple and I choose white floating shelves as our nightstands to seamlessly blend in. The linear wall lamps and curtains ground all the white with a good dose of black and balance out the ornateness of the mirror.

And of course, a poodle makes every room complete. Vincent approves.

I felt like I had so many directions I could have gone. I really relied on my Pinterest board to make sure I was sticking to looks I actually liked and not getting distracted!

Tip #1: Every space should have a touch of black. If you feel like your room isn’t quite there, double check to make sure it is grounded with some black accents.

Tip #2: Did you know animal print is considered a neutral in the design world?

This past weekend we had an “oh no, you didn’t” and “we are no longer in Idaho” moment. We went to a creperie. They had gluten-free crepes {a first in Charlotte}, red velvet, and regular. They were absolutely delicious and all the sweet waitresses made you feel like the guest of honor {didn’t realize we were that special}. And, we didn’t even argue with the waitress when she said we had to order two each. Each dish came with macaroon, chocolate encrusted strawberry. Sooo good.

This is the apple strudel crepe, my favorite. It was tasted like it was filled with fresh, tart apple crisp and was drizzled with salted caramel.

So, next time you’re passing through Charlotte, make sure and stop at the Crispy Crepe. You’ll thank us.

Next to our little place, is a wood. A Southern wood with leaves and mulch covering the ground and a path leading to a little lake. This is exciting because little surprise lakes and leaves don’t exist in Idaho, just loads of pine needles. We put on our woodsmen garb and made an afternoon of it enjoying the scenery {and 74 degree weather}.

We are here, finally. After 4 days of driving, 2700 miles, 7 states, 3 Ikea runs, we are in our place and I am bordering on the line of saying we are settled. The kind of settled where all the Ikea furniture is standing, my closet resembles a giant junk drawer, the kitchen cabinets can close {if you’ve moved recently, you’ll understand what a feat this is}, and the floors are box-free enough for the dog to run laps. The tv turns on, I’ve done the first load of laundry, and we finally have internet. Cheers to the longest and fastest week in history. Oh, and did I mention that the hubs had to fly out for his granny’s funeral? That’s right. I packed up our home to move across the country all. by. myself. {lest you feel too bad for me, my wonderful family helped me every single step of the way including when we had to switch U-hauls. I know, right? I could not have done it without them.} Anyways, I think I’m in the running for the wife of the year award.

On the bright side, it has been in the sixties here and sunglasses are my best friend. I think I forgot what sunshine looked like. Although, since spring doesn’t really begin until June in Idaho, I feel like I’ve missed out on the half the year and find myself already missing the snow. Is that normal? Also, since we’re on the subject, is it normal to walk into the grocery store and see shelves full of 5 lb. buckets of lard? And gallon size cans of boiled peanuts? This was a definite “I’m not from around these parts” moment. What does a person even do with boiled peanuts? Especially a gallon size can of boiled peanuts? Maybe it’s my age, maybe it’s because I’m a west coast girl, maybe I didn’t read enough southern novels, or maybe I’m just naive. But either way, Mr. George Carver would be very proud, I’m sure.

It feels like a such a long time since I’ve cracked open this little blog of mine. I apologize. Holidays and moving have a tendency to take over. So, let’s catch up. Merry Christmas! Happy New Years Eve! Happy New Years! And happy anniversary to the hubs and I! And happy first real work week of the year! There, now we’re good.

xo Kelsey

P.S. I felt very bedazzled this Christmas by the hubs as you can see by the pictures.

10 days ’til 2013 & we start our 3rd year of marriage. {Where does the time go?}

11 days ’til we start our treck across the country and leave our little home behind.

Anyhow, there’s my countdown for the next two weeks. Lots of change. I’m almost ready. How’s your holiday prep going? We are going over to our families on Christmas so there’s not too much prep that we need to do. Christmas presents are already bought, wrapped, and passed on. We are just continuing to slowly pack it all up. I’m starting to get nostalgic about leaving this little town in Idaho that I call home. There’s lot of “this is the last time that we…” But, change is good and it should hurt to leave. That means life is and has been good, just the way it should be. We never wanted to move when we weren’t happy or content in our current situation. If you don’t resolve your “issues,” they will just follow you wherever you go. There’s one statute of the Grauke life. Just what you wanted to know, right?

I hope you have a beautiful Christmas and surround yourself with loved ones. But most of all, let Christ’s love surround you. And, double up on the Christmas spirit! Pack it in because this is my favorite time of the year and I can never get enough. So, I’m going to unplug and will see you in the next year. {We have some big plans for this little blog…including another, I know, new look. I warned you. If you have any suggestions, feel free to comment. I’m all ears.}

Khristian A. Howell, a color and pattern expert on Etsy, is giving away one of her mini Sedona notebooks to one lucky reader! The marbled one is my personal favorite. This little guy could spice up your grocery shopping, purse, to do lists, desk, and stocking. Don’t you wish your desk looked like the one in the pictures above? Perfectly white and bright {definitely equals the best kind of office in my book}.

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